Vatican representative says people in Zimbabwe must ‘pressure’ new government

Emmerson Mnangagwa, center, arrives at the presidential inauguration ceremony in the capital Harare, Zimbabwe Friday, Nov. 24, 2017. Mnangagwa was sworn in as Zimbabwe’s president after Robert Mugabe resigned on Tuesday, ending his 37-year rule. (Credit: Ben Curtis/AP.)

Zimbabwe’s political upheaval over the past week is a historic moment that could lead to a better future, according to the papal representative to the country. Polish Archbishop Marek Zalewski said after President Robert Mugabe resigned on Tuesday, following pressure from the military, the people of the capital celebrated into the next morning.

Zimbabwe’s political upheaval over the past week is a historic moment that could lead to a better future, according to the papal representative to the country.

The people of the capital celebrated into the next morning after President Robert Mugabe resigned on Tuesday, following pressure from the military, Polish Archbishop Marek Zalewski said.

New President Emmerson Mnangagwa said on Friday that Zimbabwe “dare not squander the moment.”

Mnangagwa was fired as vice president by Mugabe on Nov. 6 in a dispute over the growing presidential ambitions of Mugabe’s unpopular wife, Grace.

His dismissal was the impetus for the military to act to remove the 93-year-old president, who had ruled the country for 37 years.

During Mugabe’s tenure, the southern African country has gone from being the breadbasket of the continent, to an economic basketcase.

Much of this is blamed on the country’s disastrous land reforms, when the government confiscated land from white farmers and redistributed it to blacks, many of whom were politically-connected apparatchiks with no agricultural experience.

The country’s unemployment level has hit a staggering 90 percent, and the currency collapsed years ago.

In an interview with Vatican Radio, Zalewski said transforming the country “will not be easy, obviously.

“What I see now is a little different way of thinking. Maybe they feel free because they realize that the military power and the army of Zimbabwe is not so bad, and they are also suffering [from] the economic crisis,” the archbishop said.

He said the people of Zimbabwe are friendly, highly educated, and intelligent.

“Putting them all together as a people and as a nation, I think they have very great potential and they could exercise it, if they are well organized, and have enough courage to make some pressure on the new government,” Zalewski said.

Pressure will be important.

Mnangagwa did not come to power through a revolution, and he does not have ties to the country’s vocal opposition. He was a longtime ally of Mugabe, and participated – and often helped coordinate – policies such as the farm takeovers and a violent crackdown on the opposition in 2008.

The papal representative said in this regard, the Church has an important role to play.

He said the Catholic bishops of Zimbabwe are the only institution clearly articulating the criteria necessary for a happy future in the country: The application of the concept of social justice, respect for religious freedom, and respect for human rights.